Early voting begins for New York’s presidential primary

Yes, it’s time to vote... again.

Early voting for New York’s April 2 presidential primary begins Saturday, March 23 and runs through next Saturday, March 30. There will be no early voting on Sunday, March 31 due to the Easter holiday.

Here’s what you need to know to cast your ballot.

Who can participate in this election?

This is a primary election, meaning that only registered Democrats and Republicans can cast ballots. No other registered voters can cast a ballot in these contests.

What’s the deadline to register to vote?

The deadline for new voters to register is Saturday, March 23. So if you are registering for the first time, you could register and vote on the same day. You can register online or go to your respective early voting site and cast an affidavit ballot, which also includes a voter registration form.

If you are already registered to vote and want to change your party affiliation, that deadline was February 14 so you will not be able to vote in the upcoming primaries.

Do I vote in the same place I always vote?

Not exactly.

New York City assigns voters to specific early voting locations, which might be different from where they cast ballots on Election Day.

You can find out where your site is by visiting the New York City Board of Elections. They have a poll site locator link on that page where you can find information about your early voting site's location and hours.

Now, for voters in any county outside the five boroughs, you can cast your vote at a countywide early voting site. You can check with the State Board of Elections for that information.

Also note, the hours for early voting vary by day, so check to make sure you are going at a time when your poll site is open.

And finally, the early voting period is normally nine days long, but only runs for eight days during this election and ends next Saturday, March 30.

What if I want to vote by mail?

The deadline to apply for an absentee or early mail ballot online is also Saturday. You can still apply for a mail ballot in person at your local Board of Elections office through April 1, the day before the April 2 election.

President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump are already their respective parties’ presumptive nominees and have secured enough delegates to win their parties’ nominations. So why are we doing this?

It is all part of the process leading up to the candidates' official nominations at each party’s respective conventions this summer. Republicans will gather in Milwaukee in late July to officially nominate their candidate, while Democrats will convene in Chicago in mid-August.

Under party rules and state election law, candidates who filed to be on the ballot in New York remain on the ballot even if they have suspended their campaigns.

Republicans will see Vivek Ramaswamy, Chris Christie, Nikki Haley and former President Donald Trump on the ballot, even though all but Trump suspended their campaigns.

Democrats will see President Joe Biden, Marianne Williamson, and Dean Phillips on the ballot. They will also see a list of delegates to the Democratic National Convention, who are all pledged to Biden.

In other states, some voters who wanted to voice opposition to Biden’s policies in the Middle East have voted uncommitted in the Democratic primary. Is that happening here in New York?

Sort of.

There is a movement among some voters who want to show they oppose what is happening in Israel and Gaza. But there is not a space to write "uncommitted" on the Democratic ballot in New York.

A voter can still cast a protest ballot by simply leaving it blank. But the impact of those votes won’t be known on primary night since the Board of Elections only includes its tabulation of blank ballots in the final certified results. That information comes weeks after the actual election.

What if I have a problem at my poll site?

The New York attorney general’s office operates a voter hotline that can assist voters and record issues and complaints. The number is (866) 390-2992.